Why is aspartame bad for you?

Question
Is it true that aspartame is dangerous? What would you recommend as a healthy no-calorie artificial sweetener"

Answer
The artificial sweeteners topic causes heated debates in the health professional and many health-conscious people, especially when it comes to aspartame. There are at least two aspects to this problem: 1) is this or that sweetener toxic and 2) are they all any good at helping the dieters to reduce calories.

1) Aspartame can provoke a wide range of symptoms including depression and headaches. In 91 studies researchers came to the conclusion about aspartame's potential for harm (see references below)

2) No double blind, placebo controlled studies supporting aspartame's weight loss effects has been published


Read more:

The brain believes the sweet taste rather than metabolic facts
http://brainfuels.com/2010/05/the-brain-believes-the-sweet-taste-rather-than-met...

REFERENCES

Aspartame and its effects on health. BMJ 2004;329: 755-6

Adverse reactions to aspartame: double-blind challenge in patients from a vulnerable population. Biol Psychiatry 1993;34(1-2): 13-7.

Aspartame ingestion and headaches: a randomized, crossover trial. Neurology 1994;44: 1787-93

Aspartame as a dietary trigger of headache. Headache 1989;29(2): 90-2.

Survey of aspartame studies: correlation of outcome and funding sources. www.dorway.com/peerrev.html

Independently funded studies have found potential for adverse effects, BMJ  2005;330:309-310  

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